Shaper attachment for a lathe



Dec. 12, 1939. L MYERS 2,183,461

SHAPER ATTACHMENT FOR A LATI-IE Filed Oct. l,k 1938 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Dec. 12, 1939. MAYERS 2,183,461

SHAPER ATTACHMENT FOR A LATI-IE Filed Oct. 1, 1938 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Wig.

Dec. l2, 1939. C, MAYERS 2,183,461

SHAPER ATTACHMENT FOR A LATI-IE Filed 061'.. 1,'1938 l 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 @7K/afa Z. /VAyf/fas,

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y Patented Dec. 12, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFlCE SHAPER ATTACHMENT FOR A LATHE Clifford L. Mayors, Omaha, Nebr.

Application October 1, 1938, Serial No. 232,870

7 Claims.

This invention relates' to a shaper and more particularly to an attachment in the form of a shaper which may be combined with and mounty ed on a lathe.

` An object of this invention is to provide an attachment in the form of a'shaper which may be detachably mounted on a conventional lathe construction without changing the present parts of the lathe structure.

I A further object of this invention is to provide an attachment in the form of a shaper which may be mounted on a conventional lathe and which includes means for automatically feeding the work support during the operation of the attachment.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a novel means for reciprocating the ram forming part of the attachment, the reciprocation of the ram being effected by means of a device adapted to be applied to the spindle of the lathe and including means whereby the length Iof the stroke of the ram may be varied at will.

A still further object of this invention is to provide in an attachment of this kind means 25, connected to the ram reciprocating device mounted on the spindle whereby the work supporting carriage may be moved forwardly at each stroke of the ram.

A further object of this invention is to pro- 30, vide in a structure of this kind means whereby the position of the ram relative to the work support may be varied without changing the length of the stroke of the ram.

T0 the above objects and others which may hereinafter appear, the invention consists of the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts as will be more specifically referred to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein is shown an embodiment of the invention, but it is to be understood that changes,

variations and modifications may be resorted to which fall within the scope of the invention as claimed.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a detail side elevation of an attachment constructed according to this invention,

Figure 2 is a detail side elevation of the attachment looking at the attachment from the side opposite from that side shown in Figure 1 and showing the device applied to a lathe,

Figure 3 is a detail front elevation of the device mounted on a lathe,

Figure 4 is a detail bottom plan of the attach- 55 ment,

Figure 5 is a fragmentary top plan of the ram adjusting mechanism,

Figure 6 is a sectional view taken on the line 6-.6 of Figure 5,

Figure 7 is a sectional view partly in elevation 5 taken on the line 'I-'I of Figure 4,

Figure 8 is an enlarged sectional view partly in elevation taken on the line 8 8 of Figure 4,

- Figure 9 is a sectional view partly in elevation taken on the line 9-9 of Figure 4, 10

Figure 10 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of the ratchet feeding mechanism,

Figure 11 is a fragmentary sectional View of the connecting link between the operating plate mounted on the lathe spindle and the ram, and 15 Figure 12 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional View showing the feed operating means connected to the operating plate mounted on the spindle.

Referring Ato the drawings, and iirst to Figures 1 to 4 inclusive, the numeral I5 designates gen- 20 erally the head stock of a lathe which is mounted on a bed I6. The head stock I5 includes a pulley structure I'I of stepped construction by means' of which the speed of rotation of the spindle I8 may be varied. The pulley or sheave I 'l is adapt- 25 ed to be operated by a power means (not shown) and if desired the spindle I8 may be directly coupled with a power means. 'Ihe lathe structure including the head stock I5 and the bed I6 is conventional lathe structure and is here shown 30 as only one type of lathe structure with which the hereinafter described attachment may be combined.

In order to provide a means whereby the lathe structure may be used for operation of a Shaper 35 I have provided a frame structure generally designated as I9 which is of substantially right angular configuration in side elevation and which a`shown in Figure 2 is adapted to rest on and be secured to the bed I6 of the lathe. The frame 40 structure I9 includes' a horizontally disposed guide member 20 provided with a pair of downwardly'extending flanges or legs 2l which are adapted to rest on the upper side of the bed IB at a point closely adjacent the spindle I8 of the 45 head stock I5. A ram 22 which is provided onv opposite sides thereof with slide members 23 is adapted to slidably engage the guide member 20 and an elongated guide bar 24 is secured as' by bolts 25 to the guide member 20 so as to slid- 50 ably engage the slide members 23 and hold these members 23 against vibration during the reciprocation of the ram 22.

A ram operating plate 26 provided with a hub portion 21 is adapted to be threaded onto the 55 forward end of the spindle I8 and this plate 26 is of a diameter sufficient to provide the necessary reciprocation of the ram 22. The operating plate 26 is provided on one face thereof with a pair of flanged guide members 28 which are secured to the adjacent face of the plate 26 by means of bolts 29. A bolt 38 is adapted to engage between the confronting faces of the Z-shaped guide members 28 and is provided with an enlarged head 3I engaging in the channel 32 at the inner portion of the guide members 28. An operating link 33 has one end thereof rockably mounted on the bolt 39 being detachably secured by means of a threaded nut 34. The opposite end of the link 33 is rockably mounted on a horizontally disposed stud 35 carried by an adjustable block 36. The block 36 is mounted on the rear portion of the ram 22 being mounted on an upstanding flange 31 of looped construction. The flange 31 provides an elongated slot 38 within which a portion of the block 36 engages with another portion of the block 38 engaging on the upper side of the looped flange 31. A bolt 39 is extended through the block 36 being provided with a handle 48 at its upper end and the lower end of the bolt 39 is threaded through a bar 4I engaging across the slot 38 interiorly of the ram 22 which is preferably made of hollow construction. The bolt 38 is adjustable along the length of the guide member 28 so that the position of the bolt 38 relative to the axial center of the plate 26 will determine the length of the stroke of the ram 22. The position of the ram 22 relative to the guide member 20 and to the work support, hereinafter described, may be determined by the adjustment of the block 36 relative to the slot 38 in the rear portion of the ram 22.

The frame I9 includes a vertically disposed frame part 42 which extends downwardly of the horizontal guide member 28 and is positioned on the front side of the bed I6 as shown in Figure 2. The vertical frame member 42 is provided with a pair of guide members 43 on opposite sides thereof which are engaged by a carriage supporting member 44. The carriage supporting member 44 is secured to the guide members 43 in adjusted position by means of a clamping plate 45 which engages the inner side of a guide member 43 and is tightened by means of bolts 45. The

' carriage supporting member 44 is provided at its upper and lower sides with guide members 41 and a work supporting carriage generally designated as 48 is slidably carried by the guide members 41. The carriage 48 includes a forwardly projecting body 49 and a pair of slide members 58 engaging about the guide members 41 so that the carrage 48 may have a horizontal sliding movement along the length of the guide members 41. A work supporting table I is secured as by bolts 52 to the upper side of the carriage 48 and includes a stationary clamping block 53 and a movable clamping block 54 which is operated by means of a pair of clamping screws 55. The article which is being worked upon is clamped between the two blocks 53 and 54. The work supporting table 5I is of conventional construction and includes means whereby the angular position of the table 5I may be adjusted about a rotatable base structure 56. The base structure 56 is adapted to be secured in its adjusted position by means ofi a set screw or locking member 51.

The ram 22 is provided at the forward end thereof with a. head 58 on which is mounted an .i adjustable base member 59 carrying a tool carriage 68. The tool carriage 58 is adjusted vertically by means of a feed screw 6I operated by means of a handle 62. The base part 59 may be rotated and locked in adjusted position by means of a pair of locking bolts 83 which engage through the base 59 and extend into the head 58 of the ram 22,

The carriage 68 includes a box or a pair of flanges 84 which are provided with a base part 65 having an arcuate slot 65. The center of the box member 64 is mounted on a pivotal member (not shown) and a bolt 61 extends through the arcuate slot 66 into the body part of the carriage 88 so that the box 64 may be rotated through the arc 66 in order to swing the tool post 68 to the desired angle. The tool post 68 is of conventional construction and is mounted at its inner end on a base member 69 carried by a pair of pivotal members 18 engaging through the flanges 64. In this manner the tool carried by the post 68 may loosely slide over the work mounted on the work table during the back stroke of the ram 22.

The frame member I9 is detachably secured to the bed I8 of the lathe by means of a downwardly extending bar or bolt 1I which extends between the two guide portions forming the bed I6 and extends through a clamping bar 12. A nut 13 is threaded onto the lower end of the bolt or bar 1I and provides a means whereby the frame I9 may be detachably secured on thebed I6.

The carriage 48 is progressively moved along the carriage supporting member 44 by means of a feeding screw 14 which is threaded through a nut (not shown) carried by the rear portion of the carriage 48. The feeding screw 14 has a gear 15 secured adjacent one end thereof and a knurled knob or wheel 16 is also secured to the threaded shaft or screw 14 so that if desired, the screw 14 may be manually rotated in order to either manually feed the carriage 48 or to initially set this carriage at a predetermined position for the cutting of the article by the tool mounted on the tool post 68. The countershaft 11 is rotatably carried by the supporting member 44 and a gear 18 is fixed tothe countershaft 11. An intermediate gear 19 is mounted on a shaft 88 carried by the supporting member 44 and this intermediate gear 151l meshes withV the gear 18 and gear 15. A ratchet member 8 I is also fixed to the countershaft 1v1 at one side of the gear 18. A spring-pressed dog or pawl 82 is mounted in a housing 83 carried by a rock member 84. The rock member 84 is rockably mounted on the shaft 11 and the housing or cylinder 83 is radially disposed with respect tothe axis of the shaft 11.. A spring 85 engages about the shank 86 integral with the pawl member 82 and constantly urges the pawl member 82 into engagement with the teeth of the ratchet 8i. A knob 81 is securedr to the upper or outer end of the stem 86 and a laterally extending pin 88 is secured to the stem 86 and when the pawl 82 is in operative position the pin 88 is adapted to slidably engage in a slot 88 provided in the outer end portion of the housing 83. The pawl member S2 may be moved to a. disengaged or inoperative position by pulling the knobV 81 and the pawl 82 upwardly and then turning the knob 81 and the stem 86 so that the pin 88 will be disposed on the outer end of thc housing 83 and at one side of the slot 89. The rock member 84 is provided with an arm 98 in which a pin 8|Y is rockably mounted. The pin 9| has a rod 82 extending right angularly therethrough and the rod 92 is adjusted relative to the pin 9I by means of a threaded bolt 93. The upperV end of the rod 92 is rockably mounted on a pin 94 which extends through a slot 95 in an arm 96. A nut 9'! is threaded onto the pin 94 and provides a means whereby the rocking movement of the rod 92 may be regulated so as to provide the desired feeding of the carriage 48. The arm 96 is secured to a shaft 98 journalled through the base members 2| and a lever 99 is fixed to the shaft 98 between the legs or flanges 2|. A second shaft |00 is journalled through the legs or flanges 2| in spaced relation to the shaft 99 and a lever IUI is secured to the second shaft |00 and is connected to the rst lever 99 by means of a link |02. An operating lever |03 is secured to one end of the shaft |00 and this lever |03 has a roller |04 carried by a pin |05 at the free end of the lever |03. The roller |04 is positioned in a cam track |06 provided on the face of the plate 26 opposite from the guide member-28. The cam track |06 is of such a configuration that during the forward or operating stroke of the ram 22, the feeding mechanism hereinbefore described will be inoperative, but when the ram 22 moves rearwardly on the inoperative or back stroke, the feeding mechanism will be effective so as to rock the lever |03 and through this lever |03 rotate the feeding screw UL4 In the use and operation of this device, the tool carriage provided on the conventional lathe is moved to one side of the head stock I5 and the frame structure I9 is then mounted on the bed I6 as shown in Figure 2. The bolt or bar 1I extends between the two track portions forming the bed I6 and the frame I9 is tightly clamped by means of the bar 'I2 and the nut 13. The operating plate 26 is threaded onto the spindle I8 of the lathe and in this manner the rotary movement of the spindle I3 is translated by means of the plate 26 and the link 33 to reciprocatorymovement. The desired tool is inserted in the tool post 08 and the workis clamped on the work table 5I by means of the clamping members 53 and 54. The carriage supporting member 48 may be initially adjusted to the desired vertical position so that the tool may readily engage the desired portion of the work. l

After this has been done, the tool carriage may be vertically adjusted or angularly adjusted in order that the tool may contact With the work. Rotation of the plate 20 will cause the ram 22 to reciprocate back and forth, and simultaneous with the back stroke of the ram 22, the feeding screw 'I4 will be rotated progressively by means of the rock member 09 which is rocked under the vertical movement of the rod 92. under the action of the levers 90, 99, IOI and the linkage |02 and |03.

An attachment constructed according to this invention may be quickly mounted upon or removed from a conventional lathe structure, it only being necessary that the hub portion 21 of the operating plate 26 be provided with the necessary threaded opening to threadably engage the end ofA the lathe spindle I8. A device constructed according to this invention will make it possible for a relatively small shop to have the use of a shaper at a relatively small cost and this shaper may be set up without requiring an additional amount of space in the shop as the entire attachment is adapted to be mounted on the present structure of the lathe. V

The pin 88 extends on opposite sides of the shank or stem 86 of the pawl 82 so that if desired the pawl 82 may readily be reversed in order to effect reverse feeding of the carriage 48. The opening 89 extends diametrically across the hous- The rod 92 is rocked from said spindle, said driver being provided respectively on one of the faces with means disposed diametrically thereof to provide a combined connection and guide groove forming element and on its other face with a cam track, a lower structure secured vto and disposed in lateral relation with respect to said depending portion, said lower structure including a shiftable, slidably mounted Work feed, an operative driving connection between said element and mechanism for reciprocating the latter, a ratchet mechanism carried by said structures for intermittently shifting said work feed, and means travelling on and leading from said Vcam track to said ratchet mechanism vfor tently. 2. An attachment for use with a lathe having a bed and a driven spindle, said attachment comprising the combination of a supporting structure for securing on said bed and formed with a depending portion, a reciprocatory Shaper mechanism mounted on the top of and slidably connected to said structure, a revolvable disc like driver adapted to be connected to and operated from said spindle, said driver being provided respectively on one of the faces with means disposed diametrically thereof to provide a combined connection and guide groove forming element and on its other face with a cam track, a lower structure secured to and disposed in lateral relation with respect to said'depending portion, said lower structure including a shiftable, slidably mounted work feed, an operative driving connection between said element and mechanism for reciprocating the latter, a ratchet mechanism carried by said structures for intermittently shifting said work feed, and means travelling on and leading from said cam track to said ratchet mechanism for operating the latter intermittently, the said ratchet mechanism including selectively positioning means for controlling the direction of the feeding ofthe work to be acted upon.

3. An attachment for use with a lathe having a bed and a driven spindle, said attachment comprising the combination of a supporting structure for securing on said bed and formed with a depending portion, a recprocatory shaper mechanism mounted on the top of and slidably connectedv to said structure, a revolvable disc like driver adapted to be connected to and operated from said spindle, said driver being provided on one of the` faces-with means disposed diametri-v perating the latter intermit-l cam track to said ratchet mechanism for operating the latter intermittently, the said operative driving connection including adjustable means' for controlling the length of the stroke of said Shaper mechanism, and said ratchet mechanism including adjustable means for controlling the extent of the intermittent shift of the work feeder.

4. In an attachment for use with a lathe having a bed and a driven spindle, said attachment including a supporting structure for securing on said bed, an adjustable reciprocatory shaper` structure mounted on and slidably connected to said structure, a revolvable driver adapted to be connected to and operated from said spindle, said driver being provided on one face thereof with means to provide a combined connection and guide groove forming element, a link, means for pivotally supporting one end of the link and for slidably connecting said end to said element whereby the link is shifted from the driver, said shaper mechanism including an upstanding flange of loop-like form, an adjustable block mounted on and having a part extending into said flange, a stud on said block, the other end of said link being pivotally mounted on and secured to the stud whereby the link is attached to said block, and means for securing the block in its adjusted and non-adjusted position to couple the link to said mechanism.

5. In an attachment for use in a lathe having a bed and a driver spindle, said attachment including a shaper mechanism supporting strncture formed with a depending portion, a lower structure secured to and disposed in lateral relation with respect to said depending portion, said lower structure including a shiftable slidable mounted work feed, a revolvable driver for connection to and operated from said spindle, said driver being formed on one face thereof with a cam track, means for shifting the work feed, a ratchet mechanism secured to said structures for intermittently operating said shifting means, and

a link travelling in and leading from said cam track to said ratchet mechanism for intermittently operating the latter on the operation of the driver.

6. In an attachment for use in a lathe having a bed and adriver spindle, said attachment including a Shaper mechanism supporting structure formed with a depending portion, a lower structure secured to and disposed in lateral relation with respect to said depending portion, said lower structure including a shiftable slidable mounted work feed, a revolvable driver for connection to and operated from said spindle, said driver being formed on one face thereof with a cam track, means for shifting the work feed, a ratchet mechanism secured to said structures for intermittently operating said shifting means, and a link travelling in and leading from said cam track to said ratchet mechanism for intermittently operating the latter on the operation of the driver, said ratchet mechanism including means for controlling the extent of the intermittent operation thereof.

7. In an attachment for use in a lathe having a bed and a driver spindle, said attachment including a Shaper mechanism supporting structure formed with a depending portion, a lower structure secured to and disposed in lateral rela' tion with respect to said depending portion, said lower structure including a shiftable slidable mounted work feed, a revolvable driver for connection to and operated from said spindle, said driver being formed on one face thereof with a cam track, means for shifting the work feed, a ratchet mechanism secured to said structures for intermittently operating said shifting means, and a link travelling in and leading from said cam track to said ratchet mechanism for intermittently operating the latter on the operation of the driver, said ratchet mechanism including means` for selectively controlling the direction of the shift of the said work feed.

CLIFFORD L. MAYERS. 

